Game raises money for Calvary's Lanny DeWitt

Tuesday

Jan 28, 2014 at 10:13 PMJan 28, 2014 at 10:13 PM

By Lee LambertsSentinel contributor

HUDSONVILLE — It was an impressive site when a gym full of a couple of hundred fans formed a circle at center court, following a night of high school basketball.Calvary Schools of Holland and Hudsonville Freedom Christian High School had just finished a tripleheader Tuesday night when Calvary Athletic Director Paul Harris invited everyone in the stands to meet on the floor to pray.The objects of the prayer, offered up by Calvary co-coach Jeff Johnson, were fellow coach Lanny DeWitt and his wife, Carol.Last march, Lanny DeWitt, 62, suffered a stroke that knocked him flat. He has come back a long way, but he still walks with a shuffle, still has limited movement of his right arm and still has limited speech capacity.But thanks to the generosity of the parents and fans from both schools, over $6,000 was raised on Tuesday, seemingly more than enough to purchase a tablet for Lanny so he can better communicate with, well, everyone.“Lanny’s going to get a tablet,” Calvary senior Luke Harris said with large smile after he announced that an estimated $6,019 was raised on Tuesday.Hugs and tears followed as the DeWitts tried to express their thanks.“It’s awesome,” Johnson said after the prayer circle dispersed. “Lanny has meant so much to these kids, and it hasn’t stopped. He still communicates with these kids and motivates them either by a look or a grunt or by a word.”The words “awesome” and “inspiration” could not be used enough Tuesday night.Harris, whose nine points complemented Aaron Johnson’s 22 points in the Crusaders' 55-40 win over Freedom Christian, said he couldn’t think of enough words to describe what DeWitt means to him.“He’s the role model every kid wants,” Harris said. “If you’re missing a grandpa, he’ll fill that role. If you’re missing a father, he’ll fill that role. He’ll do anything to show you he loves you.”That DeWitt was on the sidelines for Calvary’s win Tuesday was just another special moment.“It was surreal,” Harris said. “I didn’t know coming into this game what it was going to be like, but having him here means so much to us. He has given so much to us, (winning) was the least we could do tonight.”Tuesday’s fundraiser was the brainchild of Harris and Freedom Christian A.D. Nathan Sharp. The fact that both schools pulled off the event under adverse weather conditions was a testament to their love of the DeWitts.“Paul kind of shot the idea of this out to us and they had some connections with getting a pig and getting it cooked and the plan kind of morphed from there,” Sharp said. “We’re glad we could make it happen.“It’s his humor that does it for me. He exudes humor and charisma. We have this joke that he looks good in (Calvary and/or Michigan State) green because he’s a Michigan fan and I’m a Michigan State fan, and he’ll give me this great smile.”The Calvary girls weren’t as successful as the boys, losing 33-17 to Freedom Christian. But the loss was put in perspective with the success of the evening.“When I first learned that we were getting this new coach into Holland Calvary (for boys’ basketball), I was hearing about how old he was and I’m like, ‘Oh, no, what are we doing? I need to meet him.’“So we had this meeting and within five minutes, my heart just melted for this guy. He has got so much knowledge and wisdom of not only basketball. He’s got a big heart and his love of Jesus just shines.“He’s been like a father figure to me, but sometimes more like an uncle,” Badgero said. “I coach because I love basketball and I love Calvary, but I love Calvary because we love Lanny. The school would not be complete without him.”

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